Tuscan Lamb Shanks with White Beans

Far from being a culinary museum piece, the pressure cooker deserves a place in the 21st-century kitchen. One reason: You can make this hearty Italian meal of incredibly tender lamb with vegetables and saucy beans in about an hour.

Preparation

Pat lamb shanks dry and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Heat oil in pressure cooker over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then brown shanks well, 1 at a time, transferring to a plate.

Return lamb shanks to pressure cooker and bring to a boil. Seal lid and cook at high pressure according to manufacturer's instructions, 30 minutes. Put pressure cooker in sink (do not remove lid) and run cold water over lid until pressure goes down completely. Remove lid and discard rosemary, then transfer shanks to a cutting board and coarsely shred meat.

Spoon bean and vegetable mixture into large shallow bowls, then top with lamb and sauce.

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Reviews

Wow! I just bought a pressure cooker, and this was my introduction. I used 2 cups of chicken broth, 1 cup red wine for the liquid. A little extra rosemary and garlic. Maybe a little less salt (didn't measure). This is an easy, incredible meal. I cooked it for 35 minutes. For the woman stuck with hard great northern beans, they are probably twice as big as navy beans. I didn't soak the navy beans, and they were delicious. I used lamb shanks, will try lamb chunks another time, as bone is a little of a pain, but as noted by others, very tasty. Can't wait to see what else I can make, though I will be tempted to make this again soon!

Made this as written and it was fabulous. Only thing to note was that with our Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker it took 1 hour on the "high" setting for the beans to be done perfectly. After 1/2 hour the beans were still crunchy. I didn't pre-soak the beans at all.

New family favorite! Used cubed lamb. Increased cooking time to 40 min (timed after pressure fully reached) added steamed kale, topped with shaved Parmesan. Next time will add more tomatoes. My teenagers loved it

I didn't feel like breaking out the pressure cooker so I braised instead at 200 for 3 hours and 250 for 2 hours. I soaked the beans overnight as well. Even with these simplifications the dish was amazing. The lamb just falls off the shank.

This is becoming a "go-to" recipe for me. Super easy, delicious. The only thing that I have to add is that this recipe is actually better if made a day in advance. The flavors really seem to deepen overnight. I've even frozen the leftovers and used them a week or two later with excellent results.

I used flageolets soaked overnight and floured the lamb shanks before browning. Didn't have fresh rosemary, so used fresh thyme and mint. Other than that, I followed the recipe--shanks and beans were perfectly cooked after 30 minutes. (Presoaking helps!) I would suggest using the natural release method of releasing the pressure, rather than the quick release method used in the recipe. Quick release can toughen the meat and make the beans mushy.

Very easy and tasty but turned out a bit soupy. I would use less water next time. I did soak beans overnight and they turned out just right at 45 mins, soft but not mushy. I don't think it would be as good in a slow cooker - I hate the way slow cookers give everything a uniform taste. With the pressure cooker, everything has its own distinct, delicious flavour.

Oh, I wanted to add to my review below that I added the tomatoes to my slow-cooker only during the last hour of cooking, once the beans were already tender. (The instructions that came with my slow-cooker said to add acidic ingredients at the end so the beans wouldn't get tough.)

Excellent recipe!
We do not have a
pressure cooker, so
I made this in a
slow-cooker instead
and it turned out
very yummy. I also
used fresh instead
of canned tomatoes
(which made it
slightly less
flavorful, but it
was because of a
dinner guest's
dietary
restrictions).
Other cuts of lamb
work, too. We used
lamb shoulder chops,
as they were on sale
at Whole Foods. The
lamb fell off the
bone, so ours ended
up kind of like a
lamb and white bean
stew -- we served it
with Italian country
bread and butter.
Yum!

This is an outstanding and simple
recipe.Perhaps if "cook from Los
Angeles" had not entered their 1
fork review 16 times, the fork
rating for this recipe would be
close to a 4, as it was the first
time I used it. I soak my beans
over night even though the pressure
cooker instructions say that it's
not necessary and I also use cubed
lamb stew as the shanks are too
sinewy and don't really provide a
lot of meat (although delicious).
The tastes harmonize fabulously. We
love it.

Maybe I did something wrong but this turned out
terrible for me. I pressure cooked for 45 minutes
and the beans were actually fine. It was the lamb
that was off. I buy all my meats from Whole Foods
so I know I started with a quality cut. The lamb
tasted poached, not cooked. Very odd, gamey taste
and color. Perhaps I did something wrong though
since I'm the only one who had this comment.

I used an 7qt All Clad slow cooker for this recipe, doubled the veggies, substituted 2 Italian Stew tomatoes in place of diced, reduced water to 2 cups. Seared meat in cooker insert, then briefly deglazed with roughly chopped veggies, then added tomatoes, water and beans. Set cooker to low for 8 hours. 15min work and lovely rustic stew with crunchy bread the first night, removed remaining meat from bones, brief chop in food processor, voila, the leftovers became pasta dinner the next night.

I used an All Clad slow cooker for this recipe, doubled the veggies, substituted 2 Italian Stew tomatoes in place of diced, reduced water to 2 cups. Seared meat in cooker insert, then briefly deglazed with roughly chopped veggies, then added tomatoes, water and beans. Set cooker to low for 8 hours. 15min work and lovely rustic stew with crunchy bread the first night, removed remaining meat from bones, brief chop in food processor, voila, the leftovers became pasta dinner the next night.

This was absolutely delicious. The blended flavors seasoning the beans i believe could only happen in a pressure cooker environment. I amde no modifications in the recipe. Only problem is the pressures cooker cna't accomodate a big party - so I will probably try this in a big dutch oven on brew for three hours in the oven. Let's see if the beans can be as good.

I LOVE lamb shanks and I LOVE my pressure
cooker and what a great combination they
make.
This recipe is fantastic. The meat falls off of the
bone and mixes beautifully with the other
ingredients.
I soaked the beans over night and they were still
a bit hard after cooking, so I brought it back up
to pressure and cooked for about 5-10 minutes
and did a quick release.
I always refrigerate things like this over night
and skim off the fat. The flavors have a chance
to meld and it takes much better than it does if
eaten right away... although it it still good if
eaten right after making it.

I am an experienced cook who has
used a pressure cooker successfully
for many years. This recipe just did
not work for me. I cooked everything
for 45 mins. then opened the pot and
checked the beans (I used Great
Northern small white beans as I did
not have navy beans). They were
still hard. Another 30 mins. and the
lamb was falling off the bone but
the beans were STILL undercooked.
I liked the flavor of the lamb, but
it was no better than many of my
slow cooker recipes. For me, not a
keeper.

Have not made this yet, but plan on it. SOme observations from reading the reviews. I would suggest soaking the beans first. Also, as a food scientist and someone who grew up eating pinto beans for dinner 3-4 times a week, I can attest to the fact that adding salt at the beginning does not harden the beans. In fact, you want to do it, otherwise it's hard to get the salt level right.

Excellent! This was my first foray in to pressure cooking. I took the advice from other reviews and let it cook 45 minutes after the pressure cooker reached a good pressure level. The beans were perfectly done. Fantastic flavor and it couldn't have been easier!

Followed the recipe exactly but it needed another
20 minutes in the pressure cooker because the
meat was still not tender enough and the beans
were still too hard. Topped Parmigiano Reggiano,
splash of olive oil and parsley as suggested. I
doubled the recipe for left overs and it was even
better the next day! Perfect for a cold rainy winter
weekend.